Reports of cerebellar neural stem cells (NSCs) came initially from studies of postnatal day 7 (neurogenic) brain (Kornack et al., 2001, Science, 294:2127-2130); the source was suggested to be scattered prominin1+ cells in the white matter. Klein et al. (2005, Develop., 132:4497-508) described cells derived from cerebellum capable of forming neurospheres with stage-restricted multilineage differentiation capacity.
Much attention is focused on developing therapies to promote oligodendrocyte differentiation or to transplant oligodendrocytes or oligodendrocyte progenitors to remyelinate damaged areas and restore function in the central nervous system. NSCs can be isolated from fetal or adult brain and can act as a source of myelinating transplants but, for greatest efficacy, these cells must first be directed to the oligodendrocyte progenitor (OP) pathway. Currently, there are limited methods for stimulating the production of oligodendrocytes. For example, there are reports in the literature that retinoic acid can induce embryonic stem cells to differentiate into oligodendrocytes, that gamma-secretase can direct cells down the OP pathway, and that ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) appears to be involved in the maturation of oligodendrocytes, which results in an increase in myelin formation.